Being the best Husband and Dad means being healthy physically, mentally, and spiritually!

Week 8 Day 4: Uh…ouch maybe!

So today while I was on my second set of exercises I noticed something. My back felt a little wonky you might say. I noticed it while doing my push-ups so the third set I just didn’t do push-ups. The pain, and that’s a strong word, the pressure (See Brian Regan stand-up routine😉 persisted and I decided to knock off the rest of the day’s workouts and after consulting with my own personal trainer (my wife via text) just did some stretching to see if I could work what I was feeling on out. Remember, this workout regimen is about building and maintaining functionality. You might say, “Well wasn’t doing all this supposed to prevent injury?” and you’d be right it is supposed to help. However, this is life and things happen. Your twist a certain way, move into an exercise too fast and you can sprain, strain, or as in my case tweak something. The important thing is that you recognize it the moment it happens.

So lets talk pain. There are two types you experience when exercising. One type of pain is good pain. This type tells you that you are pushing the limits of your muscles or body. Pushing through this type of pain is okay and when done with proper form and appropriate weight can be beneficial to get the gains you are looking for. The other type of pain is your body saying “HEY, DON’T DO THAT ANYMORE!” It is important to heed this advice because if you continue to push through this pain you only end up injuring yourself further. In my case today I noticed my back telling me, “That doesn’t feel like it’s supposed to feel.” I listened and stopped what I was doing. It’s okay to stop and allow your body the time it needs to heal. Especially in my case. I am not doing all this to prepare for the start of the NFL season. The couple of days away from my workout will allow my body to take care of what it needs to and then I can back to it sooner than if I tried to muscle through my workout just to accomplish that goal.